I'm modding mine also. Getting the stock heat shield off was a PIA.
Be warned it can be a frustrating job. I'd see how much it would cost to do locally before doing it yourself.
I cut off the crush tubing planning to re-weld in nice tube. Unfortunately I don't have a decent enough selection of tools to cut the piping accurately enough to get a nice fit. So I'm doing alot of welding and grinding, but hey I need the practice.
When I do it over on the y-pipe on the car now, I'm just gonna cut out the crushed sections and weld pipe over that instead of trying to put in all new piping.
